ABSTRACT
Young people who attend Catholic secondary schools are likely to be confident of college graduation because they came to such schools with confidence of high school graduation and from families where educational expectations were strong. The disciplinary control and academic excellence of Catholic schools are in part a result of the kinds of young people who choose or are chosen for these schools to begin with. However, background factors cannot fully explain either the disciplinary or instructional excellence which appear to be characteristic of Catholic secondary schools. The greatest differences between Catholic and public schools seem to be located among upwardly mobile young people. Catholic schools may have some modest religious effect on Catholic students who attend them. There is no evidence that Catholic schools have any religious effect on black and Hispanic students. The financial efficiency is accounted for only partially by higher student/teacher ratios, lower staff income, and lower rates of advanced-degree training for teachers in Catholic schools.
